DETROIT—In crises past, Chrysler has somehow managed to stamp out a blockbuster hit vehicle to pull itself away from the cliff’s edge.

But as it faces a possible sale to another automaker and what may be the most serious problems in its 83-year history, industry analysts say there’s nothing in the current product portfolio that looks like a savior.

Chrysler’s U.S. sales are down 25 percent through September, the worst decline of any major automaker. Losses are mounting: well over $1 billion for the first half of the year. Things are so bad that Chrysler LLC wants to shed a quarter of its salaried work force, and its owner, Cerberus Capital Management LP, is talking with General Motors Corp. and others about a sale.

Of Chrysler’s 26 models on sale in both 2007 and 2008, only four have sold more this year than last, and three of those are small-volume niche vehicles such as the Dodge Viper. The company’s market share has dwindled from 16.2 percent in 1996 to 11 percent this year, according to Ward’s AutoInfoBank.

Analysts say there are no cutting-edge designs or potential big sellers in sight to rescue the maker of the Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep brands.

The smallest of Detroit’s three automakers, once-brash Chrysler took risks and gained big rewards for vehicles like the 300 full-size sedan in 2005. The company invented the minivan when it introduced the Plymouth Voyager and Dodge Caravan in 1984. The Plymouth Reliant and Dodge Aries “K-car” sedans of 1982 helped earn the money to repay $1.5 billion in government-guaranteed loans that saved Chrysler from going under in 1980.